Second trimester observations

1) They say the second trimester is when you get your energy back and feel good. This was true for me. We even managed a week beach hopping the Western Algarve. 

2) Towards the end of the second trimester however you may start to get a little bumptastic and simple tasks like bending over and spending ALL day doing serious shopping start to become a problem.

3) You may get pelvic girdle pain or Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction. Mine isn't as bad as it could be but if aggravated I can be in agony just walking. Which isn't good. And makes exercise a bit difficult meaning I have to surrender to being completely lazy with a regular nap schedule. But I'm still working full time and doing all my regular every day tasks including the mammoth commute.

4) Maternity clothes... some people say they hate them cos they aren't their style. I love them. I have got some great stuff from H&M, New Look, Asos and ebay. Ebay is a tricky one as I have become a bit addicted to the app and keep on buying things like Led Zeppelin babygrows and maternity clothes for £1.00.

5) After the 20 week anomaly scan I finally allowed myself to believe this was really happening and starting making a list and buying the odd thing.  We still don't have half the things we need but we do have a bugaboo chameleon. Priorities.

6) People give you hand me down clothes and they are so so useful. Especially big bags of gender specific hand me down clothes that include swaddles and moses basket sheets.

7) From about 18 weeks my baby started kicking. Now at 28 weeks it's the highlight of my day.

8) Biooil is only £10 for a large jar on Amazon and I smother my bump nightly although it may be made from something to do with ducks. And it does leave you a bit sticky but it smells so good. Quack quack.

9) I think once you are out of the dangerous first trimester you can let go a bit more. I have even let myself have some caffeine every week! And one half pint of Guinness.

10) People that ask you if you're having two or comment on how MASSIVE you are should learn that the only thing you say to a pregnant women is how beautiful they are.

Things I am looking forward to about the Third trimester:

Starting maternity leave (I was born to be at home)
My babyshower
My 30th birthday
Buying the other baby stuff on the list and decorating the nursery
Having a baby

First Trimester observations

I have read a lot of blogs and people always make pregnancy looks easy. I guess that's the same with most things. It's all just an illusion and I fully expected the worst.

What the books and forums and anecdotes rarely mention is... you may well feel absolutely fine and completely normal. I am starting to realise that this is completely normal and what my body is designed to do.  It seems to know what it is doing. I haven't been sick. I felt a little sick a few times. I mainly felt fine. A little tired. And often I felt and feel even better than fine. I feel good! I genuinely love being like this. It's like I finally got interested in science and biology. It's all 'wow' from me whereas before anything that wasn't English or History bored me... I am still getting over the fact that we all started as a bunch of cells. I just never really thought about it before because it just wasn't really something I thought about. But the fact that there is an actual human being growing inside me is a) immense b) terrifying c) a little creepy! I am multiplying! It is a teeny bit like an alien film. I can't believe people do this every day!

But there are a few things I wasn't prepared for:

1) Crying when you take your cats to the vets to get injections and Frank gets upset and goes into shock and  before you know it you are crying in front of a pretty young vet who is looking terrified.

2) Crying at the sight of flowers and at really bad pop songs that no-one should be crying to.

3) Being so tired that when it gets to 10pm you literally can not speak and pass out. Never felt such complete exhaustion. I don't think full time work and the 2 hour commute helps.

4) Needing to wee constantly. Too much decaf tea at work and it's every 10 minutes. Having to stop at motorway service stations on your way home because you need to wee so badly and an hour long drive is too long to last without going. Twice.

5) Worrying constantly about everything that could go wrong.

6) Trying to hide it from work etc in the first 12 weeks is surprisingly easy as long as they don't clock how often you are going to the toilet. And that you suddenly quit caffeine. And started wearing scarves. And starting nibbling nut and seed mix with alarming regularity. And eating a lot of fruit. And stopped saying No to the biscuits.

7) That for the first 12 weeks carbs will be your friend but it won't last forever. Appletiser is like a drug. Once you stop drinking you stop missing it. Until the sun comes out. But non-alcoholic Koppaberg pear cider and non-alcoholic Bavaria wheat beer are amazing. And 40 weeks isn't forever.

7b) Pregnancy does not last 9 months. It lasts 40 weeks. It is more like 10 months. This is a lot longer than you have been lead to believe for all your life. Lies!

8) The second trimester rocks.

I do know that everyone says each pregnancy is completely different so I am concentrating on enjoying this particular one at the moment. I'm just starting to feel baby move but still not entirely convinced that I am going to have an actual baby. I should possibly get out my GCSE biology textbook. I don't think its denial. I just don't think it will actually seem real until I meet her/him.

In the meantime will someone lend me £1000?

Something changed

 I am lion. Hear me roar.

 Sky.

 staunton harold reservoir. we are sailing.

 lying in the sun in the garden drinking alcohol free pear cider reading Northanger abbey and watching the planes in the sky

 walking to the pub

 camping at waswater in the lake district. utterly spectacular.

 vast. i am small.

a beautiful scotland wedding.



i don't actually believe that we are having a baby. when he/she arrives it might finally sink in. until then i have a vague notion that something is happening and maybe i should write it down. according to my app - only 168 days to go.

this space

I can't really fill this space at the moment. Apart from with cats.

London at Easter

when I occasionally remember/have the time to log in to my livejournal I read what I used to write and I cringe to the very depths of me. My head screams No - how awful -can't believe I wrote that. That's not who I am now. I am so much older, different, wiser. I have shame. Whereas now as I scroll through these pages I like to look at the photographs and I feel okay about it. And that's because I feel okay about me. 

Spring forwards, fall back

champagne, cat tongue chocolates and the plant nursery where I bought some lilies, got home, realised they were fatal for pussycats then had to dig back up and return. Sigh.

Lovely things Part deux

Frankly Mr Shankly

we always kill this tree when my mother goes away but we always manage to somehow bring it back to life as well

a floral sofa is just delightful

we mirthed much at the 'special charger' that comes with this dubious hair threader machine my mother obtained from  abroad

vintage cars at the vintage fair

lovey things

we ate take away himalayan food off that very dinner set the previous night. i love it when your things become vintage just by way of never throwing anything away

very sweet. she liked it.

i wasn't allowed to buy this cat. they said it was ugly. £15 TK Maxx, 

What with World Book Day, International Women's Day, Mother's Day, AND snow; this week has been so busy I haven't managed to finish reading Mister Pip. I am going to do that now.